The production of a multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus (SeMNPV) of the beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), has been markedly increased by using juvenile hormone analog (JHA) technology to generate a supernumerary sixth instar in the species. In the current study we compared the incidence of cannibalism in S. exigua fifth and sixth instars reared at low (two larvae per...

Instar determination of field-collected insect larvae has generally been based on the analysis of head capsule width frequency distributions or bivariate plotting, but few studies have tested the validity of such methods. We used head capsules from exuviae of known instars of the beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), to determine the larval instars with the frequen...

The beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), is a serious polyphagous insect pest worldwide. This species is known as a long-distance migrant, and previous studies on its migration have been mostly carried out in regions where it can overwinter. However, what pattern of seasonal migration this species exhibits in regions where it cannot overwinter (i.e., the 'summer b...

This study describes the insecticidal activity of a novel Bacillus thuringiensis Cry-related protein with a deduced 799 amino acid sequence (~89 kDa) and ~19% pairwise identity to the 95-kDa-aphidicidal protein (sequence number 204) from patent US 8318900 and ~40% pairwise identity to the cancer cell killing Cry proteins (parasporins Cry41Ab1 and Cry41Aa1), respectively. This novel Cry-related ...

From 2004 through 2005, plots of experimental transgenic cotton lines containing the vegetative insecticidal protein, Vip3A; δ endotoxin, Cry1Ab; and both Vip3A and Cry1Ab were evaluated for efficacy against certain lepidopteran pests. Results showed that the cotton line containing Vip3A was more efficacious against the beet Spodoptera exigua (Hübner) and fall armyworm Spodoptera frugiperda (J....

Nowadays molecular species delimitation methods promote the identification of species boundaries within complex taxonomic groups by adopting innovative species concepts and theories (e.g. branching patterns, coalescence). As some of them can efficiently deal with large single-locus datasets, they could speed up the process of species discovery compared to more time consuming molecular methods, ...

Spodoptera exigua Hübner (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is considered a polyphagous pest distributed worldwide with wide range of hosts, and also serious plague for vegetables ornamentals. The objective this study was to explore the occurrence entomopathogenic fungi in agricultural soils from Mexico evaluate its virulence effect on life cycle S. exigua. Selected isolates (HEB1 γ01) were used perform ...